Formula 1: Ferrari Throw Down the Gauntlet
Fernando Alonso’s ascent up the championship standings continued last Sunday as he wrapped up his second successive race victory. Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel gave Alonso a run for his money, but the Scuderia driver managed to maintain
the lead from start to finish after taking off from pole position. Meanwhile, Red Bull Racing also had many reasons to celebrate, with both their driver’s booking a place on the podium.
Although it appeared for a while that Vettel would overtake Alonso at the start, the two times world champion eventually managed to steer clear of the Red Bull driver. Thereafter, Alonso dominated the proceedings with his habitual
flair until the last lap on that humid Singapore night. After sealing his sensational win, Alonso fired a warning shot at his championship rivals, remarking that the championship race had only just begun.
His victory in Singapore enabled Alonso to close the gap on championship leader Mark Webber. The Spaniard is now only a mere 11 points from the Australian’s total. Over the past three races, Alonso has managed to leapfrog Sebastian
Vettel, Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton on the points table, and the Spaniard warned the best is still to come.
Alonso said his form had hit its peak in recent weeks and he was raring to continue his winning streak at the upcoming Japanese Grand Prix. Indeed, the past month has reaffirmed the widely held belief that an in-form Fernando Alonso
in a race winning car can be a deadly combination. The Spaniard proved every bit of his million dollar billing at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza only a couple of weeks earlier. Alonso gave the Tifosi the perfect treat on home soil after putting on a truly
dazzling display to take the winner’s trophy in Monza.
Although Alonso and Mark Webber are known to be close friends, the two are unlikely to do each other any favours in the battle for the championship. Starting from a lowly fifth on the grid, Mark Webber was highly satisfied after
finishing third on the podium. The Australian was thereby able to extend his championship lead to 11 points clear of Alonso. After getting caught up in traffic and falling below the top ten courtesy of an early pit stop, Webber made a commendable comeback
to ultimately finish on the podium.
The Australian was also lucky to survive a crash with McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton, who was forced to retire from the race in the 36th
lap due to damage resulting from the crash. Hamilton’s second retirement in a row could prove to be a fatal blow for McLaren’s championship hopes. The English driver was on the receiving end of a racing accident as he fought Webber for the third place
on the 36th lap. Webber, who was fortunate enough to battle on, thanked his lucky stars after the race and conceded his RB6 had a considerable degree of front-end vibration after the incident.
Like true professionals, both Webber and Hamilton steered clear of the blame game for the accident. Race stewards in Singapore ruled against punishing Webber for the incident, concluding the tussle was merely a racing accident
that could not be put down to driver error. Hamilton later explained he had not seen Webber approaching at the corner as he attempted to overtake the Australian.
Hamilton’s DNF (Did Not Finish) status was not the only blow for McLaren that Singapore night. His team mate, Jenson Button, was unable to steal the third spot from Webber despite starting from the front row. Webber’s gamble with
the early pit stop paid off handsomely when Button was unable to catch up with him despite the damage to the Australian’s car from his accident with Hamilton. With both their drivers absent from the podium, McLaren’s position in both the constructors’ and
the drivers’ championship contention looks increasingly vulnerable. With four races to go, and just 25 points separating the top five drivers, the answer to who will win the 2010 championship battle is anyone’s guess.
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